The relief of an unbearable weight

It wasn't until I received the results that I physically felt the pressure that had been weighing down on my shoulders.  After unexpectedly finding out I might be diagnosed with cancer during a routine doctor's appointment,

Unthinkable News from a Routine Doctor's Appointment

Disclaimer: This post contains a lot of detailed information about symptoms related to an infection that is atypical for women, but can also occur in men, as well.  If you get squeamish about blood, urine, or talk of both at the same time, you can skip this.

Hand washing laundry update

It sucks!

I've been off and on trying to hand wash my laundry for the past two or three months, and it is horrible.  At first, I told myself I was going to just wash the cloth diapers that I would eventually be using, because they are so complicated to wash it would just be easier to do it by hand.  Then I thought, "hey! If I am going to wash my diapers "by hand" then I might as well start off by washing my clothes.  If I do that then I will keep up with my laundry more, because I will be forced to do smaller loads more often!" Well, this isn't quite working out the way I planned...

Fresh Mango Smoothies

Fresh Mango Smoothies

I absolutely love smoothies, and what is better than a fresh, fruit smoothie as the weather begins to warm?  Mangos are awesome and awesomely good for you, but extremely hard to serve.  Check this little recipe on making fresh mango smoothies!

French Toast à la Yogurt & Strawberries

French Toast à la Yogurt & Strawberries

So, French toast is one of my all time favorite breakfast meals.  However, I am not a huge fan of syrup.  I was staying at my mother's for a few days and (like me) she keeps very little in her fridge, so I had to get creative with my breakfast.  Fortunately, she had just enough of everything to make this great take on a classic breakfast time favorite.

Muesli with Fruit & Yogurt

Muesli

Thanks to some of the nicest people that I have met, in the world, I had the opportunity to try muesli. Not sure what muesli is? Well, according to MindBodyGreen, it is "typically a dry cereal made from toasted whole-oats, nuts, fruit and wheat flakes." Which pretty much sums it up. There are a number of great combinations that you can make with muesli in order to have an excellent breakfast, or snack.

White bean & Chicken Chili

White bean & Chicken Chili

One thing about being pregnant is that you are constantly struggling to get enough iron, and there are so many restrictions on what you can and can't eat.  Because of these restrictions, as well as an aversion to meat while pregnant, I virtually stopped eating meat.  I didn't want to take iron supplements and I sorely needed some protein.  This recipe that I got from a can of beans, with a few alterations, was really delicious.

So you lost your life (cellphone)?

What do you do in the event that you lose your cellphone or it is stolen?

The first thing that you do not do is panic.  Panicking results in poor decision making which results in money and time lost that you may not have needed to spend otherwise, believe me, I just did this.

First time making a wet bag

Today I made a wet bag.

I have been talking (and thinking) about doing a sewing project for a long time.  Collecting backpacks, raincoats and the like, in order to create new things from them.  Well, tonight/this morning, I decided I was done watching DIY and how-to videos on Youtube.  I was going to make a wet bag.  (I haven't used my sewing machine in 12 years.)

Projects : #2 Milk Carton Birdfeeder

Projects - Old & New - Start to Finish: 

#2 Milk Carton Birdfeeder

Recycling fabric fun

So, while other expectant mothers are perhaps crocheting booties, knitting onesies, or sewing cute little baby quilts, I am over here like "Man! I can't wait to cut this old duffle bag apart and sew it back together as a wet bag or an apron!"

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle & Sew Something

Hand washing laundry: Make your own hand washer

Hand Washing My Laundry: Create Washing Apparatus: BUCKET WASHER

Using a bucket with a lid and a plunger (that I modified), hand washing enthusiasts worldwide (that don't want to spend $50-70+ on non-electric tools) can now wash their diaper inserts, socks and other non-delicate items much more thoroughly then before!

For some time now, I have been researching cloth diapering.  This cloth diaper research led me to researching alternative methods of washing laundry in order to save money and avoid skin irritants.  The alternative methods of washing laundry are what ultimately led me to pursuing the task of washing all of my laundry by hand. 

This is also how I discovered a way to wash laundry more thoroughly by hand.  Stomping laundry, as I did the first time, worked really well, and I still used this method this second time around, but I also added my new hand washing apparatus.

Projects - New & Old - Start to Finish

Upcoming projects to look forward to...

For the past six months I have been keeping a list of DIY recipes, crafts, and ideas:


1. Mason jar bathroom organizer.

Handwashing laundry: My adventure/hell: Day 1

Hand washing my laundry: Day 1

So, I have decided, for many reasons, that hand washing my laundry (eventually including cloth diapers) has become the only/best option for me.  I have done some research online in order to prepare for my adventure in hand washing and I have purchased all of the things that I think will be necessary in my quest to save money and not deal with public laundry facilities.

Potty Training - Teaching Adults Patience

Toddler Potty Training

I have come to the conclusion, as a parent, that potty training is a test of wills, a battle of wits, a war between ages, and kind of a silly concept when broken down to its barest, most simplest form.

Which is... teaching a small person that they need to be more comfortable taking their business into another, much smaller, room where it is taken care of in a specific location: the toilet, or the potty.

Possible Potty Training Starter Kit

Procrastination at its finest

Why do today what can be done tomorrow?

Am I right?  If you have bills to pay and they are due towards the middle to end of the month and you've still got a few weeks to go, why not just wait until it gets a little bit closer to the due date?  If you're in school and you've got a test in a month, why bother studying now?

If you have guests coming over for the holidays and plan on baking sweets and treats, you shouldn't need more then a week (or less) to grocery shop and prepare.  

Doing things way before they need to be done is just silly, because... think of everything else you could be doing!  

WRONG!

Time Management... or Not

The Importance of Time Management

Why I suck at Time Management

There were so many things that I wanted to write about at the end of my day today: awkward small talk, road rage, toddler interactions and why they are more advanced then adult interactions, but time management just happens to stick out above all else.  The reason being that I am terrible at it.

To go along with my previous post about organization, time management sort of falls into the same category.  If you're not able to properly manage the amount of time you need to do the things you need to do, then you won't ever finish doing anything that you need to get done.

The Importance of Organization

Organization:

Organization is something that I think most people take for granted. For example, when you walk in the front door after a long day at work, are the keys left in a jacket pocket? A purse? Hung on a hook?  Or, who knows what was done with them? When you go to get your mail, do you bring it inside and then add it to the growing pile on the kitchen table or the coffee table?  Do you open it all and then stack the open envelopes and letters in a pile after barely glancing at the contents?  Is your refrigerator full of old and new food alike, mixed with take-out containers, tupperware and ziplock bags?  How about the closet, that space between your bed and the floor, or that shelf you can barely see in the top of your cabinets, are they full of miscellaneous junk you didn't know what to do with? And the car, is it pristine like the day you bought it? Or is that another clutter story?